Fallen from Grace
by The Queen of Asgard
Summary: The fallen angel never imagined she would find serenity in the arms of the one she hated most. The Spartan never thought he would find acceptance in the heart that was so barred. With the universe pitted against them, they must fight the tides of war to overcome all odds. JohnxOFC
1. An Evacuation

"Mayday,_ mayday this is Prothean, we are taking a nosedive and need help! Mayday, mayday!"_

_"LT, you have to pull up!"_

_"No, I can land this!"_

_'LT, YOU HAVE TO PULL UP NOW!"_

_"Stop Becker! I can..."_

_"JOANNA!"_

_The world went black with a scream of metal and a crash of thunder. Searing pain...a crushing weight...and nothing._

* * *

Joanna Campbell woke up in a cold sweat, her legs flailing. She ran a hand through her long, curly brown hair and tried to calm her racing heart. She brushed the back of her hand across her cheeks and found that her face was wet with tears. She kicked back her now too stuffy blankets and winced as she put weight on her legs. The moon was streaming in through the window and casting shadows onto the cold floor.

She took a few silent steps to the bathroom and slowly opened the door to not wake her sleeping roomie. Or, at least her roomie for the time being. Flipping on the light, she stared at her baggy eyes and sighed, turning on the water. She took a long drink and then splashed her face, glad for the coolness to wash away the memories of the nightmare. Glancing at her reflection one more time, she raised a hand and traced a line that hadn't been there a year ago. Had it really been a year since the crash?

Now fully awake, she grabbed her flip flops and headed out the door, a sleepy voice penetrating the silence of the room, making Joanna jump.

"LT? What are you doing?"

"Go back to sleep Nollie, I'm just going out for a breath of fresh air."

"Roger that."

The mechanic's head flopped back down on her pillow and once again, she began sawing logs. Joanna smirked slightly and scoffed in the general direction of her friend Nollie Tanners, a girl although despite her best intentions, was slightly aloof and got into trouble more than she meant to.

Walking out into the hallway, her flip flops slapping against the floor, she pulled open the door to the fire escape and allowed a gust of cool air to hit her face, stirring her hair. She pulled it back into a messy ponytail and leaned against the iron railing, sighing, feeling the moon press into her skin like an old lover, wrapping her in his arms. A golden pendant shimmied its way out of her shirt and with a soft tug, hit the railing, causing a gentle ping to be heard against the metal. Looking down at the pendant, she could see the Angel Cross, as her mother had called it, shimmering softly in the orange moonlight.

"Mom...I can't do this anymore," She whispered, caressing the tarnished gold with her thumb. She raised it up to her lips and kissing it, she whispered a prayer to Isis. Her eyes then flicked onto the field of long grass that waved in the cool night air, whispering secrets that she could never know. Joanna liked Pompeii. It was quiet at night with an atmosphere similar to the one where she had grown up in, low trees framing the hills that turned into jagged mountains, piercing the purple night.

She sighed and put her full weight into the railing, closing her eyes. Becker's face was beginning to fade but she knew that the screams of horror wouldn't be gone forever. They were always there, whenever she doubted herself, at her lowest, they were there taunting her with the death she knew that had once deserved.

_'Can't think about that.'_ She thought to herself as she opened her eyes and thought about her little brother, a marine himself. She hadn't seen him for quite some time...not since she was on shore leave on Reach but she thought about him often. They had once been best friends and Joanna hated herself for growing as close as she did to him. When she left for war, he was right behind her not three years later and that scared her to death.

She took one last look at the orange sky, looked down at the field and then turned on her heel to return back to her nightmares and personal ghosts.

* * *

"Wow. You look like hell." A woman commented as Joanna put her tray laden with fruit and toast down onto the government issued table. The lieutenant cast the woman a look that would make Hell freeze over. Sitting down, she savagely bit into her toast and chewed thoughtfully for a few moments before responding.

"Thanks, Commander."

"Yeah, no problem, LT." The woman reached forward and took an apple off Joanna's tray, showing the familiarity between the two women.

Joanna scowled down at her food, "My God, can everyone just call me by my title for like, 5 seconds?" Joanna snapped irritably as she stabbed at her eggs. "I mean, I can take it a few times but every damned day..."

"Whoa, cool your jets, Campbell." Joanna's best friend and technically her next in command said, taking a bite of the apple, "I was only kidding. Didn't get enough sleep last night?"

"Ugh." She slammed her head on the table, causing silverware to rattle, "Fucking nightmares are getting worse."

"Have you been taking the pills Captain Westly's been giving you? He said they're supposed to help," The woman mumbled, reaching for a piece of toast still sitting on Joanna's plate.

"Can you stop eating my food for 5 seconds, Josie? And obviously I've been taking the pills! I mean, if they're supposed to help..."

The woman, Josie, pointed a fork in Joanna's direction, "Hey, that's Commander Holden to you, Missy. "Oh yeah, totally off topic but I was going to tell you! They're talking about evacuating the outpost in the Darwin Valley."

Instantly, Joanna leaned forward and crossed her elbows on the table, "What? I didn't think they were pulling out, not with the Covenant activity they've been getting on all the COM channels."

Josie leaned back and grinned, her hazel eyes crinkling at the corners. She was a pretty woman with straight brown hair pulled back into a slick bun and had almond colored skin. She was a little older than Jo but not by much. She was a very goal oriented woman and one of the youngest commanders at the base.

"Well, they've got Spartans there that need to come up to Newton for training. I guess they're flying in a bunch of scientists to take a look at their vitals and shit. I'm not 100% sure on the details but they're looking at you for one of the evac shuttles."

Instantly, Joanna's head perked up, "Really? Spartans? I thought they went to like...Harvest or Reach or wherever to train. We don't have shit here except like...I dunno, we have a lot of beer. Maybe they're coming for the beer. And why the hell do they think it's alright putting me on shuttle duty?!"

"Well, apparently they do." Josie chortled finishing up her breakfast, "Also, to answer your question, I pulled some strings to get you airborne again, I thought you'd appreciate that."

"I...well...I guess I don't know how to react. If I die, I'm blaming this on you."

"Well, you'll be dead so you won't be able to blame me." Josie responded, reaching for Joanna's coffee. Joanna slapped her hand away and grabbed it, sipping and wincing at the strength of the beverage.

"I'll come back to haunt you and your children, and your grandchildren and in each generations, I'll spead rumors about how you pulled strings so that I would die." Joanna smirked, draining the rest of her coffee, scalding her throat. "No, but seriously, I guess a thank you is in order. It's been a long time since I've flown troops. Do you know when we're getting called for the debrief?"

A melodic ping was heard above their heads, signaling a pipe was about to be made.

_"Now all hands turn to the debriefing hall, now all hands turn the the debriefing hall."_

"Well, I guess that's your answer. Come on, you need to get a good seat."

* * *

Joanna found herself sitting in an auditorium with at least 200 other people who were talking excitedly about the assignment. Nollie sat on her right, talking softly with another engineer but several seats remained empty on her left. However, by this point, she didn't really mind being ignored. It made it easier to concentrate on things that needed attention.

"Hey, do you mind if we sit by you, Lieutenant?" She turned her head to see a younger marine with smiling blue eyes trailed by two others speaking to her. She returned the smile and nodded motioned to the chairs.

"Of course," she said, smiling at the group. It was nice to see young people joining. They too instantly started talking about the mission at hand. Still smiling, she looked up at Josie who was sitting on the stage in a folding chair looking fresh in her dress uniform. Others sat next to her, also in their bravos but she was the only one who looked legitimately wanted to be there. Their eyes met and Josie waved, making Joanna chuckle and sent her a mocking salute.

"Attention on deck!" Someone called out as the room was filled with the shuffle of feet and silence. Hands were thrown up in a salute as an older gentleman walked down the main aisle way and up the steps, his stars gleaming on his shoulder board.

"At ease, people." He said, placing the papers he had been holding on the podium. Salutes were dropped and people began to sit back down. "People, as much as I wanted this to be a simple pickup, we've just found out thats not possible."

The lights dimmed as a hologram showing the outpost bloomed into existence. Dots began to glow on it, surrounding the camp. "We recieved word about an hour ago that the Darwin Outpost is under attack by a Covenant scouting party. They've made dents in our enemie's lines but renforcements are in orbit, waiting to land. At this time, we are not sure whether or not they are still standing by or if they have touched ground. We will do what we can to push back the enemy but our goal remains the same. As many of you know, I'm sure there are Spartans at Darwin awaiting evac. Our main goal is to pick up as many as we can but we will send troops in to help defend Darwin until the Spartans are out of range. All personnel are required to see their commanders to get orders. You are dismissed."

The lights came back on as people began talking nervously about the mission. Joanna's stomach was in knots. This wasn't the same evac mission that she had thought it was going to be not hours beforehand. This was probably going to be an all out firefight. Hearing someone crying, she glanced over to see one of the marines who had sat down next to her sobbing, tears rolling down her cheeks.

"Oh God! I don't want to die!" She wept as Joanna stood up and crossed her hands over her chest, scowling.

"Then what the hell did you sign up for, marine?" She snapped, "to sit around a push paperwork for the UNSC?! No. You signed up to go out there and kick some Covenant ass, right? So stop acting like a princess, paint stripes on your face and go fight some fucking Face Huggers." With that, Jo turned on her heel and walked towards the stage where Josie was talking to the pilots. She knew she probably shouldn't have been so harsh on the young woman but she felt like she was rearing for a fight unlike any other; her nerves were on fire.

Smirking as she climbed the stairs to the stage, she thought of the word Face Huggers, a name her brother had come up with for the Elites from a very old movie they had watched when they were kids about aliens and predators. She had laughed at first but the first time she had ever come face-to-face with the ugly creatures, she kept the name for them in her heart, in honor of her brother.

"Alright you crazies, we've got three on Spartan pickup. Campbell, Winston, Johnson, you've all got Pelicans. The rest of you have cleanup in the Hornets. Don't let any more of our people die today." Josie said seriously as the pilots, a group of about 30 or so of them, nodded slowly. "Archangel, Tomahawk and Liberty will all have troop support. We'll stay in orbit until we have all Spartans and then RTB. Let's move it people, takeoff's in 20!"

Joanna nodded along with the other pilot and ignoring some of the dirty glares that were thrown her way, turned on her heel and walked off the stage. Suddenly, someone's voice rang out and she instantly recognized the high pitched whine of her least favorite pilot, Benton.

"Hey Campbell! Don't fuck up this time!" He called as the pilots erupted into laughter, "You've got precious cargo on board and if you go down again I don't think the UNSC...ouch!"

Shut your mouth, Benton or I'll be shutting it for you!" Josie snapped coldly as he rubbed the back of his shaved head, Josie's open fist leaving a mark.

"Yes ma'am..."

"All hands turn to battle stations." A voice said over the intercom as people began filtering out, nowhere near as excited as they were before. Joanna too walked out of the auditorium and dodged people and she jogged towards the female change out where women were lacing up boots and grabbing helmets, looking grim in the light of the mission. They all knew the odds. Covenant troops took no prisoners and when on defense...there wasn't much of a chance of coming back in one piece. However grim the scene was, Joanna was proud of the enlisted women who did not shed a tear even though their eyes sparkled with the light of sadness.

"I hope these Spartans are worth it," she heard someone mutter under their breath as she donned her skintight under-suit and jumper. A pair of silver bars tucked onto her collar shimmered under fluorescent lights as she grabbed her helmet and walked out of the room.

The hangar, housing everything from the Pelicans to the larger battleships, was alive with noise and people. Jo had to dodge several men and women carrying datapads and tools, their coveralls covered in oil as they changed from mechanic to engineer, tucking datapads into pockets and mints up sleeves. It was tradition for engineers to give mints to those about to go into missions. Jo wasn't quite sure why but she had heard it had been a tradition that sailors would do before going to sea back on Earth hundreds of years ago. She tucked her bun beneath her helmet and jogged over to a Pelican, the name "Prometheus" painted on its side. It may have just tortured her more but Prometheus was her baby...as were the people on board.

"Are we ready to roll, Nollie?" She asked, flipping the visor down so that the ship's schematics danced in front of her eyes.

"That's affirmative, Lieutenant. Prometheus is good to go. I've already taken the liberty of firing her up and the team is already on the gun." Nollie tucked her datapad into her uniform's pocket and grabbed some mints, "want one?"

"No thank you." Jo murmured, climbing into the belly of the beast and nodding to her team on the guns. They saluted and she returned it but she could tell they were nervous. Everyone knew the story.

Clipping her seat belt in around her, she started turning on radars and radios, tuning them into the proper frequency.

"Tower, Prometheus, ready to fly over." She said in her most military sounding voice as others chimed in.

_"Zephyr is also ready to go, over."_

_"Jezebel is hot, over."_

_"The is the battleship Archangel, we are ready to commence operations, over."_

"_Roger, this is the tower, all ships are good to fly. I repeat, all lights are green."_

"Hang on tight!" Joanna yelled and she fired up the engines and with a bone jarring lurch, the Prometheus was in the air, hot on the heels of the Archangel.

_"The outpost is 300 miles away from this position. All stations, maintain radio silence until we are 50 miles out. Tower, out."_

"Roger that," Jo murmured, turning the radio to silent and taking off her helmet. She set the Pelican on autopilot and reached for her Ankh, the tarnished gold looking even more worn in the gray clouds that covered the two suns.

"Be with me now." She murmured, tucking the pendant back beneath her jumpsuit.

_"All units, this Is Archangel, I repeat this is Archangel."_

"Go ahead, Commander." Joanna said, turning up the radio.

"Roger, we are about 50 miles out from the base. Hornets, I'm sending you in. Take out as many as you can and make a LZ for us."

"No problem, Commander." Benton responded and the Hornets blasted out of sight.

_"Pick up, you'll hover until the current Ops Position of the Spartans has been determined."_

"Roger, do we know how many Spartans to expect, Commander?"

_"There are 4 Spartans down there, I repeat, four Spartans."_

_"Commander, we've got a landing zone but its gonna be hot!"_ Benton said grimly as Joanna began to flip switches, getting ready for the descent.

_"Roger. Alright, all units, sending coordinates now."_

A little dot appeared on Jo's screen and she silently nodded and began to drop towards where they had told her to wait. She looked down at the ground, eyes scanning for any armor that could give the fabled war machines away. Although she could see no armor, what she could see was the gunfire of the Hornets that blasted away at the Covenant forces, blasting them to pieces. However, wherever an Elite, Grunt or Jackal fell, another always took its place.

"Come on guys, let's go!" Joanna silently cheered as she watched the scene below her. Suddenly, her nav points came to life with four different dots. "Bingo! We've got Spartans!"

_"Evac shuttles, light is green!"_ The voice came from over the radio as the marines jumped on the guns and began firing as Jo slowly landed the shuttle into the gunfire.

"All Spartans, all Spartans, this is evac shuttle Prometheus." She responded as a glint of red caught her attention.

"THIS WAY!" Nollie screamed at the soldier as he...or she...turned their head and raced towards the Pelican, bullets flying every which way.

"I've gotta fly up," Jo mumbled as the Spartan jumped into her Pelican just as the doors were closing.

_"Spartans, this is the evac shuttle Zephyr coming in..."_ Winston's words were cut short as his Pelican erupted into a flaming ball of fire.

_"SHIT! LT! They've got fucking plasma cannons!"_ One of her guys yelled as Joanna swore and rolled out of the way of the green ball of energy that threatened to take her down. _"HARD LEFT! HARD LEFT!"_

Joanna's hands moved at their own accord, all instinct took over as she dive bombed towards the next waypoint.

"Spartan, this is the evac shuttle Prometheus," She said, trying to keep her cool. Now an olive green shape rolled towards the Pelican, racing through the trees towards the shuttle, "Alright. Two more."

The third was in the middle of a showdown with an Elite wearing bright yellow armor and carrying what they knew only as an energy sword. It roared at the Spartan before both charged at each other. It would have been a dance that only the greatest could pull off as the Spartan dove out of the way, the energy sword barely grazing his helmet.

_"Fred, we realize that you can do this all day but save it."_ A feminine voice sounded on Joanna's comm channel as the Spartan stood up, and seeming to accept death, stood, weaponless. With a roar of anger, the Elite rushed him, sword raised but at the last moment, the Spartan dropped to one knee, slamming his fist into the ground, a barrier coming up around him. The Elite tried to slash him but as the barrier faded, the Spartan rolled out the way, pulled out a pair of pistols and began firing at the Elite. With a moan of agony, it fell to the ground.

_"Three down, one to go!"_ Nollie cheered as Joanna grinned in spite of herself, feeling like she might be able to accomplish this. Rising up into the air, all that happiness was taken away as she saw the other evac Pelican going down in a tailspin.

_"Can't...pull...up! Mayday, mayday, Jezebel is going down, I repeat Jezebel..."_ With a crash, the Pelican slammed into the ground, the whole mess catching fire.

"No, Johnson!" Joanna screamed as with a roar, she turned around and yelled at her crew, "FIRE!"

The sky was alight with bullets as her crew mowed down the Covenant, their pilot maneuvering around anything that may have brought them down. Finally, she managed to get to the last checkpoint and land, waiting for the final Spartan.

"Spartan, this is evac shuttle Prometheus, do you read me?" Joanna trying to keep her voice calm in spite of her teammates going down. Why the hell couldn't Benton's ship get shot down?

_"I read you, Prometheus. I have an ETA of 30 seconds."_ The Spartan said as she glanced out and saw the figure running towards them, every so often, shooting at a trailing alien at his tail. Suddenly, he tripped on a widow maker and went sprawling, the Covenant right on his heels.

_"Fred!"_ The female voice said as suddenly, something popped up on her radar.

_"LT! Tanners is gone!"_ One of her crewmen said as Joanna's heart dropped to her stomach.

"No, that's impossible!" She snapped as Nollie's voice filled her radio.

_"He's not going to make it without my help, LT."_

"Dammit Tanners, get back here, that's an order!" Joanna demanded as Nollie's voice, now straining to help something up, resounded.

"_Negative, Campbell. I can't do that."_ She then spoke to the Spartan, _"Tell her to get out of here. She won't listen to me."_

_"Thank you, Marine."_ The Spartan said grimly, as his NAV point came closer and closer to the Pelican.

"No, Nollie, get back here!" Joanna screamed as the sounds of gunfire were heard.

_"Get out of here, LT. I'll hold them off while you exit."_ She sounded so calm...so fierce as Joanna's eyes filled with tears.

"All packages accounted for, Commander Holden." Someone reported as Jo's tears spotted her legs.

_"Roger, Prometheus, pull up. We've got it from here."_ Josie's voice was heard but it was far away and tinny. Still, the gunshots continued.

"I can't," She whispered, "I'm waiting for Nollie."

_"Campbell, that's not a request, pull up!"_ Josie snapped as Joanna's voice was heard a little louder.

"I'm not leaving without her, Commander!" She shouted, as Covenant forces surrounded the ship.

_"DAMMIT CAMPBELL! IF YOU DON'T LEAVE, I'LL COME IN THERE AND SHOOT YOU MYSELF!"_ Nollie roared as she fired off the gun.

"I'M NOT LEAVING YOU!" Joanna screamed as her marines tried to keep them off.

_"You're going to kill more people sitting here! Get out of here!"_

_"CAMPBELL! THAT'S AN ORDER!"_ Admiral Ross's voice roared as finally, with tears in her eyes, she pulled up on the controls and rocketed into the sky, just in time to see Nollie forced to her knees by a band of Elites.

"NO!" She screamed as one put a gun against her head and pulled the trigger, "NOLLIE!"

The cabin was silent as she began to cry, sob for her engineer and friend who was so dear to her. The door opened slowly and a towering figure had to duck as he...or she...walked in. He was the Spartan with the blue armor, the one that Nollie had jumped out to save.

"Your friend was brave." He said simply as silence descended on the cabin, "I wish I could have known her."

"What the hell do you know? You're nothing but a machine, bred for war. You're used to that. What you don't know is death, Spartan. You don't know me and you sure as hell didn't deserve to know Nollie. Now get the fuck out of my cabin before I throw you out myself."

The Spartan slowly nodded and turned around, walking out the door before leaving Joanna alone to stew in the ever deepening pot of her shock and misery she had created for herself.

* * *

**So, yeah, new Halo fic! Woo! Now, since I AM in the military, I can tell you a little more about the military lifestyle. Now, I'm still a little rusty at the whole...Halo book series thing since I've only read two but I'm trying to keep to a somewhat canon timeline. Now, there will be a point where canon will fall out and I will sort of be going on my own timeline so...brace younder selves. **

**This is still a PIP (Plot in Progress) but I warn you, it will be LONG...probably longer than Lend me your Hand and I'll Show you the Stars. Anyway, now that's that, let's get down to business. Reviews are awesome, I hope you give accordingly. I own all OCs and whatnot. Halo belongs to Bungie but I'm sure you already knew that. **

**Until we meet again!**

**The Queen of Asgard**


	2. Rescue Mission

As soon as the Pelican landed on the ground, the Spartans jumped from the cargo hold and made sure they had all their weapons. However, as soon as they were clear, the Pelican gave another lurch and the marines inside gasped in surprise as it began rising again.

"Joanna! What the hell do you think you're doing?!" Commander Holden's voice came over the COM as the Archangel landed inside the docking bay.

"I'm going back to see if I can get anyone else." Joanna snapped as she flipped switches and pulled down the visor of her helmet, "I won't let anyone else suffer what Nollie went through."

Silence greeted her as her fingers tightened on the controls. "Dammit Campbell, you're my best friend. Don't do this. You're going to get yourself and more marines killed, do you understand me?"

"Don't tell me you wouldn't do the same for me." She snarled as she pushed the Pelican out of the docking bay. Again, silence as Joanna's stomach clenched. "Commander?"

"At least you can get my name right." Josie snapped sharply as Joanna winced, as if she had been physically slapped, "And to answer your question...No, I probably wouldn't."

"Excuse me?! Didn't you just say..."

"I have a ship to defend, Lieutenant. You may be my best friend but I've got men and women on my ship who have families and who are expecting them to come home. I will not let them down for the life of one. Now, I doubt you want those men and women on your ship to die as well. Don't be stupid, Lieutenant."

Joanna closed her eyes, trying to keep her throbbing head at bay, "I...I can't do that, Commander. I can't be like you."

She heard Josie grunt angrily over the radio as Joanna throttled the machine, "We don't need more dead heroes in this war, Jo, especially not with something this stupid. I know you're brave but there's a fine line between that and stupidity and you are crossing it right now."

"I don't need your approval." Joanna snapped.

"Fuck, Campbell. I never thought you were like this. You do realize there are going to be consequences you can't even begin to fathom, right?"

"I don't need your approval for what I think is right." She snapped angrily before turning off her COM and settling to fly, her stomach so violently churning, she felt like she was going to throw up.

The flight seemed, if possible, even shorter knowing what she might find. Jo could spot the smoke from over a mile away and it made her gut twist up inside as she watched the plumes curl up and dissapear behind the clouds. She knew what she would find but she needed to prove someone wrong...even if it was just one marine, she wanted to make a difference.

She set her COM link to all channels and cleared her throat.

"This is the Pelican Prometheus, Pelican Prometheus. Is there anyone down there?" She asked, trying to keep her voice from catching. Hearing nothing but silence, she turned up the squelch and tried again, "This is Prometheus, is anyone getting this, over?"

"Prometheus this is Delta Squad," a voice, weak but readable lit up her HUD monitor on her controls, "We've got casualties but we're in need of immediate evac. How soon can you get here? We're three miles northeast from the inital outpost."

"On my way, Delta." She pushed the throttles towards the left and with the growl of the engines at her back as she raced towards the NAV point, scanning the jungles to make sure no little bastards were left, hiding in the trees with her heat sensory settings on her visor.

"Ma'am, I'm picking up something moving on the ground." One of her marines said over the COM channel.

"Do you think it's Covenant?" She asked, drawing them in for a better look.

"Not sure, but I can see the marines through the trees. There's about...14 of them. They've got some on the ground and I'm seeing some blood." He reported as Joanna brought the Pelican to hover over the foliage. "There's a spot you could probably land about 200 yards away to your north."

"Roger that," The Pelican skimmed trees as it made it's descent into a small clearing, void of any plant life. Marines jumped out, their assult rifles swaying in the wash of the propellers. The Pelican powered down as Joanna unbuckled her seatbelt and pushed back a stray hair that had fallen from her usually neat bun.

"Delta, this is Prometheus. We're on the ground, en route to your position." She responded as the marine spoke again.

"Thank God you came, we thought the UNSC had left us out here to die." He said, his voice shaking. "I guess we'll be here waiting then."

"Alright, we're on our way. Prometheus, out." She turned off the radios and jumped from the chair and grabbed her own armor that she seldom wore. After she had donned the last of her gear she picked up a UNSC issued pistol from its dock. Making sure it was loaded, she tucked it into the holster she was wearing and jumped down from the Pelican. "Sanford, stay here with the Pelican. The rest of you, let's move."

"Oorah," someone muttered under their breath as they began their trek through the dense jungles, listening for anything that may have given them a jump on...whatever was out there.

"150 yards ahead," She said softly as they moved through the jungle as stealthily as they possibly could in full out armor. She hadn't worn armor in at least 6 months but it still fit like a glove. She held her pistol as she moved along with her team, no longer an officer but one of the boys, ready to shoot whatever got in her way. "100 yards..."

"On our left!" Someone shouted as Joanna dove to the right and grabbed the pistol with both hands, eyes darting around for what to shoot at. A Grunt was crashing through the trees towardstheir position and was dead before he even could raise the alarm. However, their guns probably could do just as fine a job as any scream from an alien.

"Dammit!" Joanna swore, getting back on her COM link, "Delta squad, do you know how many are left?"

"Negative Prometheus, we haven't seen any but that doesn't mean they're not here." He said grimly as Joanna's teammates began to buzz. What if an entire armada was still out here? What if she had brought them all to their deaths?! Gut churning, she got back on her COMS and softly began to slink towards where the squad was, according to her HUD display, looking for the red dots that notified her about any roaming in the area.

"We have to get them out of here," She hissed as her marines moved forward, the swish of branches and the flashes of green only giving them away. Suddenly, a gunshot and the air was filled with plasma blasts and bullets.

"Fuck! Ambush!" She yelled, "We don't have the bodies to fight them off! Get Delta and get out of here! I need to get back to the Pelican!"

"Roger ma'am!" Someone shouted as the marines broke into a dead sprint, firing bullets at the aliens crashing through the brush. She turned on her heel and booked to towards the Pelican, her gun in hand.

Suddenly, a great Elite stepped out from behind a tree, his energy sword ablaze with energy. Instantly, the two caught sight of each other and Joanna nearly had to dive out of the way to keep his sword from coming down on her, losing her helmet as she rolled out of the way. However, this did not stop his great arm from coming down on her skull, making her teeth rattle.

He laughed nastily as Joanna wiped blood off her lip with the back of her hand and scrambled to her feet, her gun now feeling like it weighed a thousand pounds. With a nasty smirk from his split jaw, he started charging her, energy sword raised, ready to end her life with the flick of it's ugly wrist.

Time stopped. All Joanna could focus on was her own breathing, her fingers fumbling with the gun. Licking her dry, sticky lips, she could taste the copper that clung to the back of her throat like the dust and sweat that coated her face. She tightened her fingers on the trigger and felt the muscles stretch and twist under the thin skin.

The kickback of the gun brought Joanna out of her trance and pulling the trigger again and again as the Elite's shields fizzled out and died. The remaining bullets bounced off his armor but some found chinks, dark blue blood oozing out over the green armor. Yet, he still advanced, still came towards her, eyes still full of murder and hate.

CLICK

The speed of her heart sped up as she realized the chamber was empty. Fumbling at her belt for a new one, she felt the air rush around her as the creature walked up behind her, obviously aware that she was so overcome with her death that she wouldn't even realize when it would hit her.

Tears streamed down her face, streaking her face with lines in the dirt. The Elite, almost tenderly, pushed her down to her knees as her gun fell from her grip. Smirking, the creature raised its blade to end her life but...

CRACK!

Blue blood spattered the leaves at Joanna's knees as she felt the air shift around her. Daring to turn around, she saw the body of the Elite falling to the ground, all the life gone from its body. Looking up, to her surprise, she did not see where the bullet had come from but was nonetheless grateful that someone had stepped in and had saved her life...Even if she didn't want to admit it.

More gunshots were heard and mentally, Joanna identified the sound of a SRS99-S2sniper rifle from her time at the Academy. She had never been very good with it but had heard of a Spartan...

She realized that at that moment, even if they did have a Spartan on the battlefield, she would only have so many men to fight. She needed to get them out of here alive. "All squads, fall back. We're outnumbered."

"Roger that, LT. Heading back now." She dove into the belly of the Pelican and quickly crawled up to find the marine sitting on one of the seats, gun in hand, poised and ready for action.

"Do you know how to fire this thing up, marine?!" She demanded as the man nodded and began to flick switches. Joanna quickly crawled up into the cockpit and threw off her combat helmet, quickly grabbing her aviation one, flipping down the visor. "Prometheus is hot!"

"Roger, ma'am! We have Delta squad and are en route now! ETA is 2 minutes!" Someone said as a new voice broke in through the COM.

"We lost several men, Lieutenant." The voice was feminine and it surprised Joanna to hear how smooth and clear it was. She knew instantly that this was the voice that should have been in charge: this was the Spartan.

"Roger that." She said as she heard the yells and gunfire and although it was muffled, she could still tell that it was getting closer. Finally, with fingers poised on the controls like a gunman's on the trigger, she heard the words she was listening for.

"Green light! Go, Lieutenant, go!"

"Roger! Hang on!" She gunned the controls as plasma flew around her, ricocheting off the side of the Pelican as she ascended and finally, in a blast of heat and smoke, took off from the fray of the fight.

She didn't bother asking who they had lost and who they had gained. She didn't want to know who else had died. Setting the controls to autopilot, only then did wrap her arms around her knees and curl up, watching the sun dip lower and lower in the horizon. She did not cry. She was too tired to cry and knew the action would do her no good.

The ride home was long and tiring and all she wanted was a hot shower and a meal. The sun was already setting behind the mountains as they dropped to the base.

"Tower, this is Prometheus, requesting permission to land."

All she got was silence.

"Tower, this is Prometheus, do you read me, over?"

"Prometheus, this is tower. Request to know if you have Linda-058 on board with you?" The voice was cool and sharp.

"That's affirmative, she's with us now." Joanna responded as the COM line went quiet again.

"You are clear to land."

She brought the Pelican to the docking bay and finally place it down on the deck, allowing the engines to turn off. She sat there for a moment, allowing the hum of the engines to resonate in her ears for a few moments before taking off her helmet slowly and allowing her heartbeat to speed up.

Slowly, she finally jumped down from the cockpit and saw the Spartan giving her sniper rifle to a marine. Joanna watched as she removed her helmet and was surprised to see a face under the mask that she had been so accustomed to seeing, realizing that this was the first time she had ever seen a Spartan without their helmet on.

She was striking but in an almost frightening way. She had pale skin with dark red hair the color of blood and emerald colored eyes. Sensing someone was watching her, she turned and they made eye contact.

"What did you say your name was, Spartan?" Joanna asked slowly as she woman blinked slowly.

"I'm Petty Officer Second Class Linda-058, Lieutenant Campbell." She responded smoothly, tucking her helmet under her arm.

She struggled for words to say until she finally stuck out her hand awkwardly and Linda looked down on it, "Thank you, for saving my life."

Finally, the Spartan took it and briefly gave it a shake, "It's my job, Lieutenant." With that, she turned away and tossed a sea bag over her back as if it was filled with feathers and began walking down the hallway. Joanna watched her go for a few seconds before she turned and wasn't surprised to see Josie storming down the aisle where Prometheus had landed.

As soon as she was close enough, Josie brought her hand up and with a loud SMACK, slapped it across Joanna's face, the sound resonating through the hangar. Joanna stood there for a few seconds completely dumbstruck as the Commander narrowed her eyes and took a step forward, getting right into the Lieutenant's face.

"You...completely mental, crazy creature! I can't believe you actually had the balls to show your face around here again! I swear to God, if the Admiral wasn't about to totally rip you a new one, I would have already killed you several times over!" With that, she turned on her heel and stormed away.

"The Admiral wants to see you in his office, in case you didn't get the drift, Lieutenant." A first class private said nonchalantly putting an assault rifle back in a weapon rack.

"Watch yourself, private." Joanna said once she had finally found her breath before turning on her heel and walking towards the Admiral's office, her head low to keep others from seeing her burning cheek.

* * *

"Campbell, I was told to expect great things from you." Admiral Ross mused as he watched her, his great walrus moustache bouncing with every word. Joanna stood at attention, waiting for him to finish his little blurb, "When Commander Holden came to me and nearly begged me to allow you to fly on this mission she promised me a willing and compliant pilot but this...this is something you would probably get masted for, Lieutenant."

"I...understand, Admiral." She said sharply as he sighed and stood up, picking up an amber colored drink and walking over to the window.

"No, I honestly don't think you do. We're at war Campbell whether you seem to assume so or not. They made Spartans to take the Balls to the Walls missions, not marines. We don't need anymore dead heroes and hell, if that's what you're trying to become, just tell me and I'll give your name to Dr. Halsey! Is that what you want, Campbell?!" He demanded, his voice rising as he turned back to her.

Clenching her fists, she struggled to keep her composure, "No, Admiral. I want to fight with my brothers and sisters."

"Then act like it!" He snapped as he sat down at his desk and rubbed his bald head, "Look, Campbell, I don't want to do this. You've been a good mentor to our enlisted women and a good friend to Commander Holden. Hell, I think she would have lost her marbles if you hadn't been here." He pushed a paper towards her and nodded for her to pick it up.

"Sir, might I ask what it is?" She asked as the Admiral laced his fingers and waited for her to read it.

"I'm saving you the trouble of being masted. Lieutenant Campbell, I'm grounding you for 3 months. I tried to get it pushed back with this war and now with the Covenant pushing onto Pompeii but...this was the best that I could do."

"I guess I should thank you then, Sir." Joanna managed to get out before the Admiral gave her a wry smile and a half hearted chuckle.

"I don't expect you to. However, I made sure that you will continue to stay on base." He explained as Joanna arched an eyebrow.

"What will I be doing, Sir?"

"I've already spoken to one of the Spartans...Master Chief John-117, I believe his name was, and he knew that Dr. Halsey was looking for someone to help her with her research and I generously put your name forward. I do believe that Lieutenant Benton is returning with her as we speak. You will get cleaned up and report directly to Dr. Halsey."

"Roger that, Admiral." She said, still straining to keep her voice calm and even.

"I look forward to speaking with you again when your three months are up. Good luck with everything, Lieutenant, you are dismissed."

"Thank you, Admiral." She saluted sharply and he returned it as she turned on her heel, ignoring the ringing in her ears and the vomit building at the back of her throat. She had dodged a bullet but had taken a sword instead. She was transitioning to her new role in the UNSC whether she liked it or not. And she definitely didn't like the idea of being a scientist's assistant.

* * *

**So, after someone left a rather blunt review about how Joanna is a Psychopath Sue, I've decided to fiddle around with this chapter and this is the end result. Now, I'm still working on everything but hopefully this is a little better. I'm still really trying, guys. It makes it hard when all you get is the negative shit.**

**Halo (c) Bungie  
Joanna Campbell (c) The Queen of Asgard**


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